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Peonies have been successfully taken up and replanted at any season of the
year. The best time is in late summer and autumn. At that time they are
dormant or going into dormancy, enabling you to have easily cared for
replant material freshly fortified with stored food. Late summer or
autumn dug and replanted into moist soil your peony will get off to a
normal growth cycle, quickly starting new root growth upon declining soil
temperatures. The plants will be going dormant when the foliage is
rapidly losing the green color of its leaves, with healthy plants in
colder climates this is typically seen during September.
Matured peonies will have an extensive system of thick storage roots, so
large it is not practical to obtain the whole root system after two or
three seasons of vigorous growth. Do dig so as to keep a 6-10 inch length
of the big storage roots for the replant pieces. You can either take a
“pie slice” out of an established peony or dig the whole plant. Either
way an elongate spade is a big help.
To
lift the whole plant, start by digging about 8-10 inches out from the
stems and circle the plant. Cut straight down the first time around to
make a 3-4 inches trench. On the second time around angle the spade
inward. The idea is to undercut all roots at 6 inches or more length. Try
to avoid prying with the spade - good roots will be lost from breaking
away at their tops. Instead, go around again and again until the root
ball is cut loose and can be rolled out of the hole. From this point on
you are concerned with how you will divide the plant, treated below.
For a
single piece from a large peony plant, take a wedge of the crown and an
associated length of storage roots as above. A wedge 6-8 inches wide
where the outer stems emerge from the soil is a good size. Cut straight
down to release the sides of the wedge. Some plant material will be
wasted because you are digging blind. However, so long as you get a
minimum of 1-3 large buds that are well supported with stored food you
will have a satisfactory planter piece. Smaller pieces will require more
careful attention to get them through the first year. Back fill with
fertile soil where you took the piece. The source plant will close the
gap with its growth.
When
taking up a whole plant, division is a must. Expect disappointing results
if you reset a whole peony after having shortened the storage roots. It
will take the plant years to restore the root-to-top balance sufficiently
for normal flowering, if ever. The divisions will act as starter pieces
from which a new plant will grow. If you have to take up a plant early in
the growing season it is OK to replant temporarily and lift again in late
summer to make the divisions and get them replanted under autumn
conditions.
For
quality divisions, remove all soil so you can see where to make
separations. Work out excess soil at the dig site and inspect the roots
for freedom from rot or parasites. Wash well to finish the cleaning, both
for good visibility and for your safety while cutting – you do not want to
be forcing a cut while grasping a crown slick with mud. Where to cut?
Think of the current year shoot as having direct vascular connections to
one or more roots. You want to retain these vascular connections in your
divisions.
It
may also be successful to simply break the total mass into chunks, soil
and all, but best to let the raw ends dry for a day or so after. We
prefer to hold the new divisions in barely moist newsprint or peat while
healing takes place, but that is not a must. When leafy shoots are left
on, plant promptly and shade from direct sun. Plant into a well prepared,
fertile soil. (See our online article “How
to Grow Fine Peonies Almost Anywhere.”)
In
summary, the living perennial organs of your peony are two. One is made up
of the crown, it being the perennial, underground stem portion, normally
also plump with stored food. More importantly the crown bears the large
buds that will make leafy shoots next spring. The second organ is made up
of the large food storage roots. After the original plant is out of the
ground, reduce it to divisions that will serve as the starter pieces from
which your new plants will grow. |